Postcard Friendship Friday #12

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Marie of Voila! Vintage Postcards is hosting another Postcard Friendship Friday, and I have a postcard from the Hotel Monson in St. Augustine, Florida as it looked in 1940. St. Augustine was a pivotal point in the 1963-64 Civil Rights Movement and this hotel was visited by Dr. Martin Luther King.
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According to Wicipedia, "St. Augustine was the only place in Florida where Dr. Martin Luther King was arrested. This took place on June 11, 1964 on the steps of the Monson Hotel restaurant. He wrote a "Letter from the St. Augustine Jail" to his old friend, Rabbi Israel Dresner, in New Jersey, urging him to recruit rabbis to come to St. Augustine and take part in the movement. The result was the largest mass arrest of rabbis in American history on June 18, 1964 at the Monson motel." Click on the link above to read more about this and the history of St. Augustine.
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The above view is the second incarnation of the Monson. The original Monson House burned in 1914. The hotel was razed in 2003.

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The Old Schoolhouse in Old Town St. Augustine

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St. Augustine is the oldest continuous settlement in the United States, and was founded by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés on September 8, 1565. Menéndez first sighted land on August 28, the feast day of Augustine of Hippo, and consequently named the settlement San Agustín. Martín de Argüelles was born there one year later in 1566, the first child of European ancestry to be born in what is now the continental United States.

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St. Augustine Lighthouse

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This is a town worth visiting. There are many historic sites, wonderful restaurants and lovely Bed and Breakfast inns.
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Water wheel in Old Town


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The Mister and I stayed in this room, The Coachhouse, at the Casablanca Bed and Breakfast Inn during one of our visits.

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The description of the postcard reads" Hotel Monson, St. Augustine, Florida. Delightfully located on Matanzas Bay overlooking the Atlantic. Newest and most modern hotel in St. Augustine. Fire sprinkler system throughout. Excellent golf, bathing, fishing, boating and other sports. On (Hwy) U.S. Fla 4

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The card is postmarked twice. On the back it was postmarked in Savannah Ga. on March 25, 1940. The front is postmaried East Troy Wisconsin, March 27 1940.

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The card was mailed to East Troy, Wisconsin, a village in south east Wisconsin, and the message reads:

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Dear Claudine,

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We got your letter Sat. night. We were so glad to hear from you all. Whats all this we hear about the Prom. Daddy got real excited. We are just north of Brunswick Ga. on Highway 17 North.

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Love, Mother and Daddy

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The back story: Daddy was excited on two different levels after reading Claudine's letter about being invited to the prom. First of all, she had about withered away worrying about being invited to Prom during the weeks just prior to Mother and Daddy's timely escape to the deep south. The Drama Queen of the household had her eye on that, that, person, what's his name, Dinky or Inky or Linky Danielson and set her hat for him to take her to the Christmas Dance. Well, he showed up and hour late in a slick suit, and a bold tie, driving a souped up car and saying things like "swell" and "gal" and "okey dokey". Daddy was ever so reluctant to allow this person to remove his daughter from the premises without subjecting him to the usual grilling in the den. And now after 3 months, Daddy was mortified that this young man was not only still in the picture, but would be escorting his lovely daughter to the prom.

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Claudine had decided THIS was THE dress months ago!

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The next level of excitement had to do with Daddy's wallet, which was under constant siege from all sides by Claudine who was following in her mother's well shod footsteps. This would certainly set him back, what with a new dress, ANOTHER pair of shoes and all that frilly stuff women required to outfit themselves inside and out for these things. Why her Christmas gown wouldn't do he would never know. Claudine had even hinted that if she did not die a painful death waiting for the Prom invitation from Inky or Dinky or whatever he insisted on calling himself, that she would certainly die if she did not have a graduated pearl necklace and matching earrings just like ALL all the other girls would be wearing to Prom. Where does she get these ideas into her head. Good thing Mother remembered to bring his blood pressure medicine.

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(For another fun event - one that YOU can attend - check out yesterday's post!)